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How to Order and Pay forCivil Registration RecordsGetting the most from the General Register Officewww.gov.uk/bmdcertificates

The General Register Office (GRO) based inSouthport, Merseyside, holds records for allbirths, deaths and marriages that have beenregistered in England and Wales from 1837.This booklet provides you with information tohelp you order and pay for a Civil Registrationrecord.What certificates are available?For a full list of records available from the General Register Officesee pages 10 and 11.The quickest, easiest and cheapest way to order a certificateis to go online using the GRO’s secure online ordering serviceat: www.gov.uk/bmdcertificates2

How much will I have to pay? Service PriorityPriority ServiceFull certificate with a GRO index reference suppliedFull certificate without a GRO index reference supplied(if customer requires the GRO to index on their behalf a fee of 3.00 is charged)Additional copy of the same certificate at the same timeonlinePhone/Post 35.00 39.00 38.00 42.00 35.00 35.00Standard ServiceonlinePhone/Post 11.00 15.00 14.00 18.00Additional copy of the same certificate at the same time 11.00 11.00PDF 7.00n/aCommemorative Certificate with a GRO index reference supplied 35.00 39.00Commemorative Certificate without a GRO index reference supplied 38.00 42.00Full certificate with a GRO index reference suppliedFull certificate without a GRO index reference supplied(if customer requires the GRO to index on their behalf a fee of 3.00 is charged)Please note that the GRO will retain a fee of 3.50, to cover the work incurred, ifwe are unable to find a record of the event you have requested. Any additionaladministration fees which you may have paid if not applying online or includinga GRO index reference are non-refundable. Orders for PDFs are non-refundable.3

The General Register Office Index of eventsThe GRO provides a public index that lists basic details of every birth,marriage and death recorded in England and Wales since 1837. If youprovide details of the index reference number it will be cheaper for youand also help speed up your application.The historical birth and death index - births over 100 years old anddeaths from 1837 to 1957 (those records that have been digitised) canbe viewed free of charge online, via the GRO website atwww.gov.uk/bmdcertificatesYou can also visit www.freebmd.org.uk which contains a transcription ofthe index from 1837 to 1983.Further information on researching GRO index reference numbersis available at https://www.gov.uk/research-family-historyWhat do I need to know about shortand full certificates?The fee is the same for a full certificate or a short certificate. A full birthcertificate is an exact copy of the full record. A short certificateprovides much less information and no details of parentage.A full adoption certificate generally includes the date of the adoption order,name of the court and shows the adoptive name, the name(s) of theadoptive parent(s), date of birth and (where known) country or district ofbirth.4

What if I am interested in certificates ofrecent events?The GRO is not able to issue certificates for events which have takenplace within the last six months (for marriages this period is extended toeighteen months) and you may wish to obtain a certificate from theregister office for the district where the event was registered.This excludes adoption certificates as the local register office does not holda copy of the Adopted Children Register. Adoption certificates can only beobtained from the General Register Office and can be applied for by theadoptive parents once an adoption order has been made.5

Getting your certificate legalised foruse in another countryIf you need to use a certificate in an overseas country, the localauthorities in that country may require the certificate to be legalisedby the Foreign and Commonwealth Office in the UK before they willaccept it.For further information on how to get your certificate legalised as wellas details of the current fee for an Apostille please seewww.gov.uk/get-document-legalised.What is the PDF Service?The General Register Office (GRO) is continuously improving the way itprovides civil registration services; including registration records in aformat other than by paper certificate.We offer historical birth and death records for England and Wales inPortable Document Format [PDF]. These include birth registration recordsover 100 years old and deaths from 1837 to 1957.A GRO index reference is required to be provided with the application.You can find the GRO index references by logging on to the GRO onlineordering service and accessing the GRO online indexes.It should be noted that a PDF has no evidential value, and therefore apaper certified copy [certificate] is required for official purposes, e.g. ifapplying for a passport, driving licence, or where required to give noticeof marriage or to form a civil partnership. You should also note that thisservice is only available via an online application.For more information on the PDF service please visitwww.gov.uk/bmdcertificates click 'start now' and select 'MostCustomers Want to Know'6

Service levelsStandard Service : your certificate(s) will be despatched on the fourthworking day from receipt of order, or the fifteenth working day when noGRO reference number is quoted.Priority Service: your certificate(s) will be despatched on the nextworking day from receipt of order, if received before 4pm.PostageThe following postage options are included in the price of your applicationStandard Service : your certificate(s) will be posted to you using 2ndclass postage.Priority Service: your certificate(s) will be posted to you using 1st classpostage.Additional Postage OptionsThe following postage options are in addition to the price of yourapplication and are only available if you use the Priority ServiceRoyal Mail Next Day Delivery– despatched on the next working dayfrom receipt of order, Delivered via Royal Mail Special Delivery to arrivebefore 1pm the day after despatchRoyal Mail Saturday 9am – Saturday deliveryDHL Overseas Delivery– despatched on the next working day fromreceipt of order, to be delivered worldwide outside of the UK within 7working days of despatch.Additional Administration FeesAdditional administration fees are payable if you choose not to applyonline. An additional fee is also payable if you do not provide a GROindex reference. These cover the extra cost of processing these type ofapplications and are generally non-refundable.7

How do I order and pay?You can order online or by phone using: Visa credit card, debit cardor Visa Electron, MasterCard, and Maestro.It is cheaper if you order online via www.gov.uk/bmdcertificatesWhen you are applying online you will need to provide: Your full name and addressA contact email addressValid credit/debit card informationDetails of the event you are applying for: birth, marriage, civilpartnership, death, adoption or overseas recordWhen you make your first online application you will need to register andyou will be asked to provide an email address and password.By phoneIf you want to order certificates by telephone you can call 44 (0) 300 123 1837, Mon-Fri 8am-8pm, and Sat 9am-4pm.You can also request an application form by phone.By postIf you apply by post you will be asked to complete a GRO applicationform. Application forms are available on the GOV.UK website: vely you can get a form by sending an email tocertificate.services@gro.gov.uk confirming the number and type ofapplication forms required.For postal applicationsPayment can be made either by credit/debit card, cheque, postal order orinternational bankers draft payable to ‘Her Majesty’s Passport Office’. Payments made by international bankers draft should be in sterling. Thedraft must bear the name and address of a clearing bank within the UK Please do not send cash Where you wish to use the priority service please clearly markyour envelope ‘priority’ A stamped self addressed envelope is not required8

Important additional information The GRO is unable to accept any amendments or cancellations toorders once they have been placed Full identifying information will be required to identify the entry if you areapplying for a certificate where the event was registered in the last 50years If you are not able to supply the GRO reference you will be charged anadditional 3.00 and a search will be carried out for you in the GROindex that covers a three year period (this means a search in the yearyou quote, plus one year on either side). GRO staff can only carry outthis search if you have provided sufficient information to identify anentry. In the case of popular names likely to occur frequently in the indexes–for example: John Smith 1861 London, more specific details areneeded to help identify the correct entry. In such situations, the first sixentries that agree with the name you’ve requested will be checked tosee if a match can be found that way. Should none of the six entriesagree you will be informed and issued with a partial refund and askedto reapply with more information. The certificate will be folded and posted out to you in a C5 envelopeusing standard postal services. There is an additional charge for prioritycustomers requesting a premium delivery service. If the GRO is unable to produce a certificate, on the basis of customerinformation provided, then 3.50 will be retained from the certificate refundto cover costs incurred. In these instances, any additional administrationfees paid with the application are also non-refundable. There may be circumstances where the Registrar General may waiveadditional charges, but this would be by exception. If, for any reason, the GRO is unable to despatch certificates within thepublished turnaround times, a service announcement will be posted onthe login page of the online ordering website. Details will also beavailable via a recorded message on the contact centre telephone line.Further details about GRO and all its services are available atwww.gov.uk/bmdcertificates9

What records does the General RegisterOffice hold?Events recorded in England and WalesRecord heldExplanationFrom - toTo orderBirth and deathrecordsA record of all births and deaths recordedJuly 1837 – 6 months priorto the present dateOnline,telephoneor postMarriagerecordsA record of all marriages recordedJuly 1837 – 18 monthsprior to the present dateOnline,telephoneor postCivil PartnershiprecordsA record of all civil partnershipsrecorded2005 – the present dateOnline,telephoneor postThomas CoramRegister*A record of children given into the careof the Founding Hospital1853 – 1948PostAdoptedChildrenRegisterA record of all adoptions granted bycourts1927 – present dateOnline,telephoneor postStillbirth registerA record of all stillbirths recorded1927 – present datePostParental OrderRegister**A record of all births that have been reregistered on production of a courtorder where a child has been born via asurrogacy agreement1994 – present dateOnline ortelephoneGenderRecognitionRegister**A record of people who have been issuedwith a gender recognition certificategranted by the gender recognition panel2005 – present datePost ortelephonePresumption ofDeath Register**A record of all events recorded in thePresumption of Death Register2015 – present datePost ortelephoneEvents recorded abroadRecord heldExplanationFrom – toTo orderRegimentalrecordsRecords of births/baptisms, marriagesand some deaths relating to British ArmyRegiments1761 - 1924Online,telephoneor postChaplainsreturnsArmy Chaplains records of baptisms,marriages and deaths1796 - 1880Online,telephoneor post* Postal address for certificates issued from the Thomas Coram Register: Coram Community Campus,49 Mecklenburgh Square, London WC12 2QA* * Copies of these records can only be applied for by phone or post.10